Clouds and Discords
by xxPenAndRosesxx
Summary: You know those times when the world turns you upside down? Well, welcome to middle school! It's one hairy ride, and with a pissed off prefect, a crazy best friend, and the mafia on her tail, Tamaki Subaru's life is never going to be the same ever again!
1. Tamaki Subaru's Debut! I Think

A/N:

For those of you who have read this story before (in its numerous, painful formats) please check out the author's note at the bottom of the 4th chapter. I would also advise rereading, because I changed a lot of stuff. Especially when it hits chapter 2.

For those of you haven't though, just ignore and enjoy! :)

* * *

Life is like the lottery. You make guesses about what will happen, and then nothing ever goes right. You know the water you drank from that fountain yesterday? Poisoned with sewage because the janitor forgot to fix the pipes. That math test that you thought went well? You actually got a 64. How 'bout that girl you wanted to confess to? In reality, she got asked out by the captain of the football team.

Ha ha. Sucks to be you.

Sometimes, though, you actually _do _get what you want. Question is: do you recognize it?

Well, this is the story of a sweet and somewhat awkward girl, whose wishes were often not granted for one reason or another. However, one day God throws something totally unexpected at her. This is the story of how she deals with it. This, my friends, is the story of Tamaki Subaru.

So, what'll happen? Read if you dare!

* * *

Chapter 1: Tamaki Subaru's Debut... I Think

A typical day for Tama began with darkness.

Such a thing always seemed unsuitable to her. She liked energy. Life. Light. Yet every time she opened her eyes, that pitch blackness was there to greet her. The damn thing seemed to suck up all life, and the only place that didn't wasn't infected by it was a small area by the window. Faintly, golden sunshine poured through the dusty blinds, as if yelling at her to fight.

"Ugh... what time is it?" grumbled a childish voice

Her small hand emerged from under the covers, looking small admist the huge objects. It stumbled about, knocking over about nearly everything before finding its target. Her fingers curled over the alarm clock and brought it to Tama's face. It stared back at the sleepy girl, with its numbers merely being annoying, fuzzy dots.

Although... once she could actually read them, the message seemed to be something straight from hell.

"Huh? Wait... It's se- HOLY SHIT! IT'S SEVEN FORTY FIVE?"

The creature suddenly lurched upright, the mirror reflecting part of her grisly image. Orange hair frizzed out from the roots, and her small beady eyes had shrunk in panic.

"CRAP! I'm this late? "Shit shit shit shit shit shit..."

Quickly, she scrambled out of bed to get ready. However, at that moment her foot suddenly twisted into the sheets. Soon, the unlucky girl fell, becoming reacquainted with the green, pukish colored carpet below.

BOOM!

"OW!"

The next minute later a rant of profanity was strung along the air, and Tamaki Subaru made her debut. Ruffling her hair, she scowled up at her surroundings. Like any other day, they made her mood even worse. The sheets felt like a giant carpet around her tiny figure. White walls towered like skyscrapers overhead. Even the books, which were piled up in huge stacks, seemed to swallow her up.

Damned height. Being only 152 cm was such a pain in the ass.

"Maaaaaaaan!" she complained, folding her arms grumpily. "This sucks. My first day too!"

With a huge groan, the fourteen year old stood up and glared at herself in the mirror. The black shorts and yellow T-shirt that reflected back felt so comfy. She almost didn't want to get ready.

Reluctantly, her gaze shifted back to room. That didn't motivate her in the least either. Clothes were strewn everywhere. You could barely see the floor. Not to mention the ugly decor. The scene really was like something out of a mother's worst nightmare.

"Ugh. I really should organize this crap," she grumbled, kicking over a stack of rented manga. "I never have the time though."

Shifting through her things, Tama made a half-hearted attempt at finding her uniform. Eventually, she spotted it under the bed (God only knows why.) Just as she suspected, it was wrinkled almost to the point of nonrecognition. With a heavy sigh, she went to go grab it, walking fast across the room.

Then, for the second time that morning, she tripped.

_BOOM!_

"OWWWW! MOTHER_FUCKER!_"

Emphasizing the second part of the word, Tama hissed bitterly. At once, she snatched up the culprit, and a pair of roller skates dangled from her fingertips, looking lopsided and worse for the wear. They shone with a spiteful, neon-green luster and almost seemed to laugh at her misery.

Her first instinct was to naturally hurl them across the room.

Then, a light bulb flickered in her brain, and her hand stopped in mid-air.

"Huh... Actually..."

Really, you would think that anyone else would have the common sense to not do what she did. Or for that matter, _attempt_ to even_ think _about it_. _But being the reckless, idiotic youth she was, Tama instead slung them over her shoulder, with a thoughtful smirk plastered on her rueful face.

So, half an hour later, the energetic teen burst through the doorway, washed, fully dressed, and riding on the roller skates out the door. With orange hair blurring by, she gave a wide, tiger-like smile, as if ready to beat back anything that stood in her way.

"Namimori, here I come!" she exclaimed brightly.

And that was how her pitiful school life began.

* * *

**Namimori Jr. High, 7: 56 a.m.**

"Gokudera! WAIT UP!"

Meanwhile, Tama wasn't the only one having a semi-crappy day. One particular Sawada Tsunayoshi was running late for school as well. Stars swirled in his eyes as if the constellations decided to go get funky and disco, and he ran as fast as he could along the sidewalk.

_Stupid Reborn! Why didn't he wake me up?_ The brunette thought. He couldn't help but curse his bad luck, feeling miserable, tried, and unlucky.

As usual.

"Are you okay, Tenth?"

It was at that moment that Gokudera's shadow enveloped Tsuna. Purposefully slowing down, his right hand man looked on him with concern. It seemed nowadays he was more paranoid than usual and could never be found far from his "boss."

"Yeah..." Tsuna nodded sheepishly, heaving heavily. "Sorry to be a bother! That fight with Xanxus must have drained me more than I thought."

In between breaths, he couldn't help but grimace. The Ring Battles... the fight that decided the fate of the Vongola and their lives. Even though they had had officially ended a while ago, they seemed hell bent on making an impression on him. The seven rings didn't seem to really compare to what they actually had won that day: their safety. The Varia were nutcases that he never wanted to ever see again.

Though, you could also say he wasn't really _entirely_ happy with the outcome. The fact that he was now the sole heir to the Vongola famiglia's Tenth generation boss didn't really help things out either, if you thought about it a bit.

"Heh! Don't worry, Tenth!" Gokudera interrupted, folding his arms with a smug smirk. The pride in his voice didn't make Tsuna feel better in the least. "Being the top hitman squad in Italy doesn't mean much when we kicked their asses. I'll protect you no matter what!"

Tsuna sighed. No matter how many times he tried, his "right hand man" never seemed to understand his true feelings. He supposed that wasn't exactly new, but it got annoying sometimes. They were almost like complete opposites.

You see, instead of being worried, Gokudera seemed as passionate as ever as expanding their "family." All he had ever heard from the white-haired Italian was plans of conquest, destruction, and demolition in the past few days, and no one seemed safe from him. Tsuna was half-wondering why he wasn't getting reported for arson yet.

Yet, as he threw his head back up at the clear blue sky, there were also optimistic thoughts buzzing through the boss's mind. He couldn't help but feel a bit comfortable in this situation.

Who would have ever thought he'd miss this "normalcy?" Running late for school, getting blown up, trying to avoid getting the living shit kicked out of him by Reborn... It almost felt nice. Maybe now, everything would quiet down for a bit.

"INCOMING!"

Or... not.

_WHOOSH!_

BAM!

"HIEEEEEE!"

"TENTH!" Gokudera's mortified voice exclaimed

Tsuna, the unfortunate soul, didn't even have time to react. At what felt like fifty miles per hour, something abruptly crashed into him with a screech. Knocked backwards, he flew into the air. The image of bushes was the last that he saw before impact, a cloud of dust left in his wake.

"Ow ow ow..." The brunette winced, feeling thorns poke into his side.

With great difficulty, he stretched and found his foot hitting against something. To his surprise, it was a girl. A short, rollar skate wearing little girl. She couldn't have been bigger than Kyoko but had a more energetic vibe. Orange hair bristled out at him, covering her dizzy eyes.

_W-What? _he shrieked mentally. _Where did she come from?_

"YOU BITCH!"

However, he didn't have long to ponder. Gokudera's war cry interrupted him. Sticks of dynamite flared from the bomber's fingertips, ready to send the girl to a gruesome death.

"WAIT! GOKUDERA!"

Tsuna had to basically restrain Gokudera just so he wouldn't rip her to pieces. Throughout the whole event, he was hungry for bloody murder in the worst way possible. As far as normalcy went, this was one of the things that Tsuna did _not _miss.

So, after a short, hysterical conversation (provided mostly by Tsuna) Gokudera finally calmed down. He scowled at the girl, who was knocked unconscious apparently, and turned his head away. Tsuna sighed with relief. That was one problem taken care of.

"But now what should we do?" the brunette asked, furrowing his eyebrows up. Her uniform was from their school, but he never had seen her before. Was she a transfer student? If that was the case, then the logical thing would be to bring her to the nurse.

Gokudera had other plans though.

"I know, Tenth!" he brightened up. "I think the river's nearby! Let's just dump the body!"

"GOKUDERA!"

His life was never going to go back to normal at this rate, was it?

* * *

A whole school day went by after this incident, and when Tama stumbled out of the infirmery, there was only one way to describe her mood:

Pissed off.

Her shoulders swaggered in an angry way as she walked, with everything bad seeming to pile up on her. Her body ached, and a mind crumbling headache pounded inside her skull as she swore. A dark mood also overshadowed her, digging its claws in firm.

Now, normally, she really wasn't really like this. However, getting knocked unconscious wasn't exactly the proudest moment of her life. To make things even worse, when she asked the nurse what happened, she found out that she had accidently crashed into someone and was out for the entire day. Now she was behind on work, in pain, and had made a fool out of herself.

And she was supposed to find a new life here? Don't make her laugh!

Damned Sensei. Why'd she send her here anyway?

"Stupid. Stupid. STUPID!" she snarled, kicking a random can on the street. "I'm so stupid... This school's stupid. Sensei's stupid. Everything stupid! Ugh! I don't believe this!"

The rambling went on and on for several minutes, and in that time span, Tama was about as attentive to her surroundings as a dead cat. She really should have been cautious though. All around her, the few students that were left started to pale, for whatever reason. Then, they scurried off without a second glance. Soon, a space of five feet spanned around her, where no human being could be seen.

Except for one.

THUD.

On cue, Tama's head hit something. Her first thought was a telephone pole, but then she looked up.

And found herself staring at a towering senior.

He was thin, but solid and glanced down at her with much annoyance. She didn't recognize him at all, but it didn't take much for her to realize that he practically reeked of authority. The clean, straight black haircut that ended just above his ears. The sharp, cool, and pretty annoyed looking eyes. The flat frown that was set on his mouth.

Not to mention the height.

Great, as if she didn't need to be reminded of how small she really was. Where was a growth spurt when you needed one?

Meanwhile, as she glared up at him with jealousy, the boy studied her up and down. Not unlike that of someone checking an insect that had landed on the bottom of his shoe.

"Hn... Who are you?" he demanded, staring at her intently. "Are you a student, herbivore?"

His tone was demanding and sort of ticked her off. She didn't like being called "herbivore" either. It suggested that she was weak, and she hated it when people looked down on her. The girl sourly glared up at him and stuck out her tongue for good measure, just to show how pissed and uninterested she was.

"What the hell do you think?" she hissed back. "Do you not see the damn uniform, retard?"

Tama jerked a thumb at the blue vest, and his frown grew even deeper. At this point, a few of the straggling students had made it a point to stare and whisper a few meters/miles away. She glanced at them, finally noticing them for the first time. A few of the upperclassmen were actually hiding behind the bushes. She wondered what was scaring them so much.

Though, that train of thought didn't really last long after something suddenly was shoved into her hands. She blinked at the senior, who snapped close the folders of a little black book.

"Perfect," he stated, looking irked. "Then you can take_ this_. Detention tomorrow for obscene language. One hour. Be there."

Tama stared at the pink slip in her hands before back at him. Then, she noticed the black jacket hanging off his shoulders. On it was an armband with the words _Namimori Disciplinary Committee_ printed out nicely in big bold black. And it didn't take long for her to realize what it meant.

_Of course._ No wonder the little ass seemed so demanding. He was a prefect!

"What? This is bullshit!" she snarled, crumpling the paper up angrily.

The boy's expression now borderlined obvious irritation. The whispering around them grew even louder too, and she couldn't stand it. The spectators were just so gutless that it made her want to puke.

However, this guy's attitude was even more ridiculous. It was the first day of school, and already he was tacking up people. Probably to assert his machoism or something. She wished she could have just stayed at Sachiru instead of transferring after the first semester. It wasn't the best place, but at least the administrative dudes were casual and loose.

Unlike this guy. Stupid, egotistical prick.

"Make that two detentions," the guy ordered, bringing her back to earth. He wrote out another slip and got ready to hand it to her. "Be grateful. I'm going easy on you, freshman."

Maybe that was why she did what she did next. It could have been the bad mood speaking. Or it could have been that his personality just set off a fuse. Either way, something made her do the most unthinkable and stupidest thing in her entire life.

She flipped the guy off.

"Well then, screw you," was her curt reply, her middle finger proudly out for the world to see.

Now, Tama got two sets of reactions to this. The first? The prefect's: His eyebrows had shot up so high that she thought they were going to fly off his face. And by God, was it priceless! This was a Kodak moment if she had ever seen one, and it lifted her mood considerably.

_That's right, you school centered bitch! _she cheered mentally. _Don't underestimate me!_

The second response came from the students. If she thought they were timid before, then they were absolutely terrified now. No one wanted to stick around. They all slinked away, and she suddenly found herself alone with the other boy. Which she couldn't understand why until it was far too late.

He sighed, now recovered from the shock, and wore a simple mask of distaste. Then, his hands slipped into his jacket to reveal a pair of gleaming silver tonfas.

Along with her next few days of hell.

"I'll bite you to death," he simply stated.

* * *

WHOMP.

A second. Tama had only had a second to duck. But that moment almost felt like an eternity. She could see the metal sheering over her orange hair, barely missing the base of her head. She could feel the wind blow up in her face. What really hit her, though, was the smirk she could see on the prefect's face. It stretched from ear to ear and could be described in only three words: bloodthirsty, murderous, and positively sadistic.

And that, in her mind, was king of all cues for her to _get the hell out of there._

Tama did a quick drop roll. It got her far enough away to spring back up and start running. And when I say she ran, she _ran_. Her image was a mere blur to the nearby bystanders, some of which who were roughly shoved aside. Ignoring the dirty looks, she pushed on ahead, racing through the crowds.

"Ah *gasp* ah..."

Her breath quickened as she heard him come after her. One peek was taken over her shoulder. Then, her head snapped back forward in panic, with a sudden picture of the devil surfacing to her mind. He was only mere inches behind her and gaining.

She needed an advantage and _fast._

Miraculously, she had almost gotten it too when a food stand came into her line of vision. All she saw were the hot oil vats, but a plan formed immediately. Thank God for quick thinking. The owner didn't even have time to protest when she suddenly slid in and grabbed them. Then, the boiling liquid was flung into her pursuer's direction.

Now, what happened after that was probably one of the most stunning things in her entire life. Something like it could have only come out of a manga, but somehow, the prefect managed to deflect it in the most epic way possible. He raised his weapons, and steel crashed into steel as the cooking instrument went flying perpendicular into a shop wall.

Tama would have gawked if that didn't scare her.

"CRAP!"

Backed up with more motivation than thought possible, she pushed herself to go even faster. Her feet hit the ground, one after the other. Andrenaline pounded. Everything seemed to spin faster and faster as she felt the prefect behind her. He was a hunter, the best she had ever seen, and his breath was practically on the back of her neck, hissing like steamed water.

She wasn't going to be able to lose him easily.

All hope wasn't lost though. Just as she began to mentally make up a will, her hand accidentally banged against her bag. Then, the heavens opened up for her in the form of a round, medium-sized can. She felt it through the leather, scraping against her thigh. It may have seemed insignificant, but once she realized what it was, a ray of hope appeared.

With a deep breath, her hand plunged into the knapsack. Awkwardly, it rummaged around until she finally felt the item's cool metal, banging up against random, miscellaneous crap. Then, she spun around to face the prefect.

PSSST!

The pepper spray nailed him dead on.

"*Cough* *Cough*"

The sound was music to her ears. She grinned as his tonfas clattered on the sidewalk, and the prefect hacked out his lungs like no tomorrow. Curled up into a small ball, the his power seemed to get stripped away. There was nothing more satisfying to Tama than to watch him writhe in pain and discomfort, pwned by a mere can of Mace.

_STRIKE TWO! _she thought with glee.

At least, that's what she assumed until she caught sight of his eyes.

"..."

Tama became mesmerized by the piercing glare, somehow frozen in place from fear. His pupils were watery and red, but also sparking with so much anger that it took the phrase "looks could kill" to a whole new level. Wordlessly, the prefect slowly rose to his feet, his black jacket swirling ominously. Then, when he bent over to pick up the weapons, she finally snapped out of it.

_SHIT!_

And that was how she met the demon of Namimori.

* * *

It took a while, but they played tag for about a half hour before she finally lost him. Quite barely, but lost him all the same. By this point, her clothing was scratched, there was mud everywhere, and she was as tired as a dog. Limping back to her apartment, she ignored the bystanders who gave her quizzical looks. Instead, she concentrated on getting to her destination without collapsing.

Down the steps. Up the elevator. Finally, she made it back to the nice, clean hallway of her apartment. The wooden door's polish shone at her in welcome, and a sense of security came over her as she heard the key click inside.

So, now finally back in the safety of her home, Tama collapsed on her bed and decided that she needed to take a bath. It would be nice if it didn't hurt like hell, though.

"Oh God, it stings!" she winced in the hissing water.

Her body ached as it submerged into the tub. Muscles contracting gratefully, she sunk deeper into the water, with her orange hair floating above the bubbles. Then, she sighed with contentment. It felt comfortable once she got over the pain.

Then, she softly touched her wounds, remembering that icy eyed kid from before. She sulked with irritation.

School might be more troublesome than she originally thought.

* * *

My first chapter in the Clouds and Discords series. Enjoy!

* * *

**Omake # 1: Epic Report Fail**

Meanwhile, a few miles away, one Hibari Kyoya stormed into Naimori Jr. High's Reception Room. However, instead of sitting at his desk, he sneered at the sunlight outside. The bright cheerfulness of it all irritated him, and the curtains were instantly snapped shut, making the room match his mood.

Afterwards, he reclined on the nice, leather sofa nearby. It was supposed to make him feel relaxed, but nothing could ease the wrath in him right now. Only a handful of people could surprise him that, and the thought of that mere little brat doing such a thing pissed him off.

"Annoying," he muttered crossly.

Just as he was about to relax, though, footsteps tentatively entered the room. His eyelids fluttered open, revealing two icy slits.

"Excuse me, Hibari-san, but..."

The vice chairman soon fell silent. At this point, Hibari had turned the other way to make himself more comfortable, with his back facing the subordinate. However, even with his face hidden, you couldn't miss the thick tension in the air between them.

"You better have a good reason for coming in," the third year growled.

"Um... it's just for the daily reports. If this isn't a good time-"

"Just talk. Or forever hold your peace."

The tall teen swallowed hard before shifting through some papers. Although the last phrase seemed harmless, both of them knew fully well how true that could be. Hibari never had been one for waiting after all.

"Well... today Sachiru made another disturbance," Kusakabe uneasily read. "We took care of that quickly, though, so it should be settled for now. Next, Sawada Tsunayoshi was seen running around in his underwear again. Oh, and there also was a sighting of the new transfer student roller-skating on the grounds. She'll be easy to solve too. Her hair's orange, so we can catch her in no time."

The last item on the list made Hibari twitch. The irritation came back ten-fold and was fueled by the words of how "easy" the problem should be to solve. Of how "easy" it should have been to catch her. Or of how "easy" she should have been punished, as if he didn't just chase after her throughout all of bloody Namimori!

Hibari turned his head to glare at Kusakabe. His legs swung over the side of the couch, with the soles of his shoes making a hard click on the floor. Needless to say, this was the first sign to the vice chairman that something had happened.

Too bad that wasn't really going to save him.

"D-Did I say something wrong?" he tried.

Hibari slowly skulked up towards him, slipping the tonfas out of his back pocket. Its metal shone murderously in the light, reflecting the other prefect's startled face. The silence also magnified now, and terror gripped his victim as one, dreaded phrase was uttered:

"I'll bite you to death."


	2. The Worst Day of My Life

Chapter 2: The Worst Day of My Life**  
**

If there's one given fact in this world, it's that everyone has bad days.

Granted, everyone's experience is different, but I think most people would know the feeling by now. For one, it utterly sucks. From the minute you wake up to the moment you limp home, life becomes a living hell, and nothing in between can stop it. In her case, Tama had thought she had already reached that point. In the span of one day, she already had:

a) got knocked unconscious

b) missed a day of school (unintentionally)

and

c) pissed off a prefect

But she never thought that the worst was yet to come, and in the form of math class the next day.

Like any other subject, Tama didn't really care for math. It wasn't as horrid as Japanese, or God forbid _English_, but she didn't love it either. The complex problems made her head spin, and her teacher was the most unappealing person on the planet. With a twitchy moustache and a plump figure, he reminded her of one of those mariachi band players that liked to stalk girls under their windows at night.

His personality really needed work too, as she would soon find out.

"Alright. Now tell me: what is the answer?"

After a long and tedious explanation, the man faced his class, with a huge metal ruler. No one was eager, to say the least. Everyone stared at him with blank faces, with not a clue in all of the seven circles of hell. He sneered at them all, his beady eyes hungry for prey.

Then, his eyes rested on a certain girl in the back row.

I think we can all guess who that is.

"Subaru!" he ordered in a deep, rumbling voice. "Why don't_ you_ try to solve this problem?"

A few pounding sounds later (courteous of the ruler), Tama's head jerked up from her desk. Her blinking eyes became wide awake at the teacher's glare, which seemed to burn a hole in the back of her head. She gulped a little and sat up a bit straighter. The emphasis on the _you _didn't really help either.

"U-Um..." she tried, squinting at the chalkboard. "Is it... 389?"

The verdict was awaited, with the sound of the clock's ticking making it even more painful.

And... of course, he frowned.

_Dammit._

"No. It's 26x!"

With a hint of distaste in his voice, he turned and roughly scratched the number onto the board. The chalk screeched, and each and every student quickly clamped their hands over their ears. Someone even swore from the back, doing it softly so as not to be heard.

"Pay more attention!" he barked sternly. "Not only Subaru either. All of you! This isn't nap time, you idiots."

"... Yes, Sensei," they all grumbled.

Then, as soon as his back was turned, everyone threw their middle fingers into the air. Tama's was naturally among them. Everyone hated that smartass, and she couldn't see how the other teachers could stand him. He was rude. Ugly. Not to mention snobby. He always was picking on people for the stupidest things and acted like God's assistant.

He and that black haired kid from yesterday would have made the perfect couple.

Immediately, the prefect's insane smirk came to mind and made Tama cringe. Her insides writhed in a swirl of uneasy emotions. Leaning back into her chair, she chewed on her bottom lip, thinking about the screwy events that had transpired the past day.

Originally, she had decided to come to school, but for some reason, now she was getting sort of nervous. His eyes. His face. His voice. They all got her scared and angry. No one had ever intimidated her like that, and it unsettled her like you wouldn't believe. Why couldn't she fight back? Why'd she run? Who was he _really_ anyways? These were all questions she still had unanswered.

Oh, and to make things even worse_, that_ in turn made her look like a squirrel on crack. Every minute, her head turned and expected him to barge through the door. After all, that guy was the school's guard dog, and it wouldn't be a surprise if he knew her schedule.

Another chill shuddered, and she suddenly had the urge to hit her head against the desk.

_Dammit! _she yelled internally. _Why am I getting so paranoid?_

"Chicken shit bastard," she hissed under her breath.

Unfortunately for her, that phrase didn't go unnoticed. The teacher spun around and snarled, with everyone holding baited breaths. It didn't dawn on Tama why either until it was far too late.

"TO THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE, YOU BRAT!"

Dumbstruck, the fourteen year old's jaw promptly dropped open. The teacher looked a furious rhino, just ready to rip her pieces, and she took that as her cue to leave. Swiping her books off the desk, she hugged the blue textbook and spiral notebook close to her chest. They became tightly pressed, as if all her irritation could simply be squeezed away between the sheets.

Needless to say, that didn't work out too well.

Feeling disgusted, she popped in a piece of random gum while walking out. It felt sour in her mouth, just like how her week was going. Apparently, she was supposed to make herself home here, but maybe staying put would have been a better option. Sachiru... the thought of that school seemed like heaven compared to this place. Why did Sensei send her here to begin with anyway?

"Crap... I don't get this at all," she sighed, wandering down the hallways.

Tama stopped for a second, lost in her thoughts. Then, she found herself staring stupidly at the maze of corridors before her. It seemed endless, twisting into random crossroads that went on for forever. The girl face palmed herself, knowing that finding her way out wasn't going to be a piece of cake. You wanna know what made it even worse?

Her sense of direction was like a dead pigeon's.

"Oh well," she sighed. "Can't get any worse, right?"

* * *

Unfortunately, it could.

Hall after hall she crossed, wandering around aimlessly to find some sort of landmark. It was amazing. She found the library, the gym, the boy's bathroom... everything but the stupid principal's office. It always eluded her, like the damned thing hadn't existed to begin with.

Finally, when she stood in front of a door marked "Reception Room," her hands were finally thrown up in defeat. There was no two ways about it. She was lost. Hopelessly, God forsaken lost.

"UGHHHH! I don't believe this..." Tama seethed, staring at the blank door as if it would give her all the answers. "Not a person in sight either!"

Down in trashy spirits, she emphasized her point with a hard kick to the door. Truthfully, she didn't think there was anyone around to hear it. It was more for her own sake than anything else. But then, something inside the room groaned.

And growled.

"Who... woke... me... up?"

Now, remember how Tama usually doesn't think? And has the crappiest luck? Well, those two worst qualities seemed to mesh into one when she heard that familiar voice. Though faint, the chilling sound should have cued her to do _something_. But no. Instead of running away or getting into some sort of fighting pose, Tama (the idiot she was) simply stood there as the door suddenly screeched open on its hinges.

That was when she came face to face with the devil himself once again.

The prefect from the other day stood before her, leaning casually against the door's frame. His hair was messy, and there was a sleepy look that coated his face. To be honest, he even looked completely sane if you ignored the tonfas in his hands. However, despite that, the mental alarms went banging immediately.

They grew even louder when he seemed to remember her too. His eyebrows shot up, framed by a rather malicious expression

"You..." the prefect murmured dangerously, crossing his tonfas. "So, you've come to receive your punishment? Freshman?"

A wide smirk that screamed "PSYCHO HAPPY MURDERER!" suddenly graced his lips. You could understand the bloodthirstiness behind it in any language, and needless to say, it wasn't a good sign in the least. No, not at all. Fear gripped like the plague, and she suddenly wished that her body would become one with the floor.

Her knuckles turned white, either from fear or nervousness. Should she start running?

"I dunno," she dryly replied, trying to hide her emotions. "Is your version of 'punishment' legal?"

_Crash._

Her question was answered when a tonfa whizzed by her ear. It hurled into a glass window, shattering it to a million little pieces. Oh, and even better, apparently the thing was connected to a chain. With the weapon hurdling back at her, Tama turned and decided that yes.

Now was a good time to run.

* * *

So, after another hour of playing chase, Tama finally managed to get away.

Frankly, she didn't know _how. _Somehow, their travels took her everywhere from Chinatown to the petting zoo, and it didn't seem like the little bastard could be shaken off at first. However, regardless of that, the important thing was that now he was gone.

The relief she felt was almost heavenly too. In her unknown surroundings, the exhausted girl sighed with content. Finally, she had peace. There was no sound of footsteps. No sight of his creepy image. No tonfas flying out of nowhere to skewer her head. Nothing. Now she was safe.

At least for the moment, anyways.

"Ahaha... aha. Ah~"

So, with her adrenaline high finally wearing off, Tama wiped the tears and sweat away from her face. She sat down, feeling drained. Now that he was lost, maybe she could just go home and hide away for a bit. You know. Until she gathered enough energy and courage to come back.

With that in mind, she took a brief look at her surroundings, maybe thinking that she actually knew where she was for once.

What a fool she was.

"Huh?"

Of all places, the area she happened to land in was a forest. A forest with trees and bushes and more trees. It didn't look like a park either. Everything was too quiet, and chances were she was more likely to get mauled by a bear than find someone around. There was no path here either, just dirt and bugs.

In other words: she got lost again.

Great.

_"AHHH!"_ she internally screamed.

Throbbing like no tomorrow, her head pounded as she dreaded the current situation. This was bad. Really,_ really_ bad. She had experiances of nature up in the mountains, but this was something completely different. How was she gonna get out?

Depressingly, she crouched down and laid against a rock for support. This was just getting to be a horrible day, and she wanted to rest.

It sucked, though. Why couldn't she for once, just _once,_ get a break? Everything was a total wreck. She thought that just yesterday was bad, but now things were ridiculous! She was sweaty, tired, and hungry. Her skin was partially bleeding. Both her teacher and a prefect hated her, and to top it all off, she was lost in the center of a twitshit, middle of nowhere forest.

God, this was really hitting the pits. If her life was some sappy shojo manga, she'd be bawling her eyes out by now. Kind of like that girl who was hiding in that corner over-

_Wait, _she blinked suddenly, her head shooting up. _GIRL?_

Sure enough, much to Tama's confusion, there was a girl seated next to a tree in front of her.

At first glance, she couldn't understand why she didn't notice her before. Her appearance was pretty bizarre and should have been easily noticeable. Purple hair sprouted from her roots, shaped like a shiny pineapple. A trident was clutched close to her chest. She even wore the Kokuyo school's green, skimy uniform. Finally, there was a black eye patch strapped over her right side, with the imprint of a skull on the cloth.

If Tama didn't know any better, she'd guess that she was cosplaying.

However, all oddities aside, there really did seem to be something wrong. She could be oblivious sometimes, but even Tama knew when someone was sad. Every other second, the girl choked out sobs, like the world was going to end. It had to be something pretty damn happy for her to not be miserable.

Tama figured she was in no condition to help either. So, slowly getting up, she tried to creep away like a ninja and leave.

BOOM!

Then, at that moment, her foot hit a root and tripped. With an anticlimactic fall, she fell face forward at the girl's feet.

So much for getting away.

_SONOVABITCH! _she cursed mentally.

"W-Who are you?"

The girl's voice sounded so timid, yet hinted at a bit of mistrust. Unsurprisingly, Tama found the girl staring at her, the trident out in hand and looking somewhat scared. She quickly waved her hand around for peace, probably looking like an idiot.

"Wait! I didn't mean to do that," the crude girl quickly exclaimed. "I... I'm not trying to scare you, I swear!"

While Tama stammered away, the other girl decided that she was no threat. She quickly wiped away her tears with her free hand and went back into her fetal position. It seemed the situation wasn't awkward for only Tama.

"No. It's fine..." she mumbled.

That was probably the most hypocritical statement of the century though. Tears still streamed freely from her face, like an unplugged waterfall. Tama knew fully well that whatever it was that was bothering her, it wouldn't go away. Just standing here like a moron wouldn't help the situation either.

In the end, she had a choice. Either she could go away and think about her own miserable life, or she could stay here and mourn someone else's. They were pretty bleak options, if you asked her. Instantly, she wanted to pick the first. She couldn't handle emotions anyway.

However, something at the back of her conscious suddenly twitched and rooted her in place. It was like a train wreck; she just couldn't tear her eyes away from the girl. Sitting there, all alone... Could she really just leave her like that?

So, with a great sigh, the teen crossed her arms and dejectedly braced herself.

This really was a bad day, wasn't it?

* * *

"So you're having a bad day too, huh?"

The girl's head lifted up slightly in surprise. In front of her, Tama sat, with her chin propped by her free hand. She had started the conversation hoping that it would spark something. Her companion didn't answer back, though, and it became an awkward silence at best.

She coughed.

"They suck, don't they?" Tama continued in the silence. "They come and go, but when it gets bad, it gets bad."

Unfortunately, her words seemed to have the opposite effect that she wanted. The other girl became standoffish, curling tighter into a solitary ball. Tears started rolling down her face even more, and thick sobs touched the air. They made Tama panic as she snapped a twig in half. The breaking sound echoed into the woods, mixed in with the thick atmosphere.

_Oops_, she thought sheepishly. _Maybe that wasn't the best way to go about it. Change of plans. _

"U-Uh... do you wanna talk about it?" she asked, rethinking her careless words. "Or do you want me to leave?"

The girl stayed silent but pleaded with her eyes. At first, it seemed like she wanted her to go, but then her head shook from left to right. "No." For some reason, she didn't want either option. So, with nothing else to do (and literally, she had nothing else to do) Tama sat there with her, breaking the branches at her feet in boredom.

This was really, _really _awkward. Why did she get involved again?

"Uh... what's your name?" she finally asked.

The answer took a while. The girl didn't seem to keen on talking at all. After a few minutes, her lips finally parted, taking great effort in the action.

"C-Chrome," was the hesitant reply. "Chrome Dokuro."

Well, that was a good start at least.

A whole graveyard of sticks were now at Tama's feet, and she began to work on the grass instead. The movement made her less nervous. She faked a grin, trying to fan the flames of the conversation once again.

"Chrome, huh? That's a nice one. Mine's boring: just Tamaki. But I really like yours. Are you foreign?"

"Someone important to me gave it," she murmured, shaking her head in a no. A faint smile graced her lips, as though she could see the memory clear as day.

"Your parents?" Tama guessed.

However, her mark was as far off as ever. At that, the smile wilted bitterly, and the girl huddled in even closer.

"No. They never cared for me," she sadly stated. "Th-They still don't I think."

Tama gave her a strange look, puzzled by that remark. Then, she suddenly noticed something.

Something very, very wrong.

Reaching out her hand for her, as though to confirm her suspicions, she touched Chrome's shoulder. To her horror, it barely felt like skin on bone. It was lean, almost flat against the veins running through. She wasn't eating enough, and her sickly pallor made that point only clearer.

The mood darkened instantly.

"You were abandoned," Tama murmured with realization.

The tears were all dried now, and finally the girl had stopped crying. With red eyes, she faced Tama without fear. Now, they had found a bridge to cross and that connected them together.

"_Was_," she emphasized, with an ironic smile. "But I have people I can protect now. That's all in the past."

"Then, why were you crying?"

The girl paused, lowering her head as though to hide an ugly secret. But Tama knew. Reflecting in her wavering purple eyes, Tama saw herself as a child: meek, weak, and scared. They probably didn't share the same circumstances, but she knew that whatever it was, she could understand.

And Chrome knew that too.

"I saw one of them today," she stated, her voice hushed. "It was by surprise, but I saw my mother by accident. I thought that at the very least, she might recognize me. But..."

Her words choked, and she buried her head into her knees.

"She... She *hic* didn't. She just looked and... *hic* walked away. Like it was nothing."

Tama became unsettled. As the girl sat before her, bawling her eyes out once more, she couldn't help but feel her blood curdle. Of all people... a mother. No wonder she was so sad.

Eventually, Chrome had cried enough to let it all out. At that point, whatever light was left died, leaving behind a milky sort of night. The stars illuminated them overhead, barely revealing their dismal faces. Tama felt the need to say something, something useful at least.

"H-Hey, are you..."

_Crack._

"OW!"

Then, of course, the moment got completely ruined as something collapsed on Tama's head. More specifically: a whole slew of branches. Coming out of nowhere, the barrage nailed her dead on and sent her spewing curses instantly.

"God _fuck_ it!" she hissed, nursing her head once more. "Where do these things come from? Son of a- DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME, YOU DAMNED, OVER SIZED PLANT! I'LL CUT YOU TO SHREDS!"

As Tama started kicking at the bark, she felt herself stop as she heard a sound: laughing. She turned around and found Chrome covering her mouth, looking embarrassed as her tears mixed with giggles. They were choked, and she looked like a wreck, but she was laughing all the same.

"S-Sorry," she sputtered apologetically. "It's just... so..."

Another giggle burst out unexpectedly. Usually, Tama would get insulted, but somehow, she found herself smile too. Slowly, it snowballed from a chuckle into booming laughter, and soon the two of them were laughing hysterically like a bunch of idiots.

At the end of it all, the two girl smiled at each other, feeling happier than they had in hours.

"Ah!" Chrome suddenly said, looking up at the night sky as though only noticing it. "It's late! I need to get back home."

Tama remembered her circumstances and grimaced. "Yeah. Me too. I wish I knew where I was going though."

"That uniform..." she said, staring at it with recognition. "Could you be from Namimori?"

The world seemed to open up in lollipops and sunshine for Tama. Her head bolted upright with surprise.

"WAIT! YOU KNOW WHERE NAMIMORI IS?"

Her face lit up with excitement. Thoughts of Ramen noodles, a hot shower, and a nice bed filled her head as it buzzed with the prospect of finally being able to go home. Hell, after all this time, maybe there was some hope after all!

At least, that's what she thought.

"I don't know the town too well," Chrome apologized.

Then, a big rock called _disappointment _crushed onto Tama's back. Tears slide down her face anime-style, and she banged her head against a tree. Now, it was official: she was the unluckiest, stupidest, and most wretched person in existence.

Meanwhile, Chrome furrowed her eyebrows up in concentration. Then, a stroke of inspiration suddenly hit. She bent over and poked Tama, who was sullenly picking at the mushrooms on the ground.

"But," the girl replied tentatively, pausing for a moment. "I do know someone who does."

* * *

And so, within the next hour, the two of them found themselves standing on someone's doorstep. As Tama looked up, the house seemed normal at first. There was the regular red brick layered roof, the yellow outer walls, and the neatly lawn spread out behind them. However, if the loud cries of fighting and breaking glass inside were an indicator of anything, there seemed to be a _little _more to it than met the eye.

And by a little, she meant a _lot._

"Catch me if you can, Tail-Head!" whooped a kid's voice.

BOOM!

Sounds of mass destructive ravaged the house, with something suddenly blowing up. Tama almost hid behind the bushes. She slowly turned her head towards Chrome, the name of her friend from the woods, and studied her. Surprisingly, she didn't even flinch at the ruckus, as if hearing such things were something she did on a daily basis.

"Um... Are you sure this is the right house?" Tama asked skeptically.

Another explosion rocketed in the background.

_What is this place?_ _A housing spot for the mafia?_

"Lambo! Return food!" cried a girl in broken Japanese.

_Crash!_

She probably wasn't too far off.

"NO! Stop destroying the house!" cried a meek voice.

Tama tried to ignore the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as she rang the doorbell. For good measure, she did it again for an extra four times in case they couldn't hear it above all the noise. Chrome waited patiently with her, her hands folded politely and quietly.

"You're pretty calm," Tama told her, her right eye twitching as another explosion went off. "This madness doesn't affect you?"

Chrome looked startled at her flat statement, but not in a bad way. A smile came upon her lips in response.

"It's nice," she simply replied.

"Really? It just gives me a headache."

It was true. All the sound made her head throb like the inside of a drum. Tama was actually on the verge of just giving up and sleeping outside for the night, but then someone finally heard them. Two voices chatted in the background, one with a smoker's edge (it sort of sounded like Sensei's) and the meek one from before.

"No no, Tenth! I'll get the door! As your right hand man, I should handle things like this," said the smoker.

"I-It's ok, Gokudera-"

"No, no. I insist."

Mentally bracing herself, Tama watched as the door swung open. Then, the light from the house illuminated the two teenagers in front of her. The first was a white-haired guy in punkish clothing, with skull based rings and a black T-shirt on. He also looked like he had seen the living dead. Meanwhile, his friend was a brunette with a bewildered face. He looked slightly less scary, with chocolate puppy dog eyes and spiky hair.

The three of them stared at each other, with the interior of the house still bursting with noise.

"..."

"..."

"..."

And then all hell broke loose.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" the white haired guy exploded. "Damn you... I KNEW IT! YOU'RE AN ASSASSIN WHO'S TRYING TO KILL THE TENTH!"

While the brunette tried to hold the rabid kid back, Tama meekly swung her head over to Chrome for help. However, she was already long gone, running in the other direction for home. With a huge sigh, the orange haired girl covered her face with her hands and suppressed the urge to bang her head off another tree.

From the pan into the fire. Couldn't she get a break for once?

Apparently, not.

**BOOOM!**

And those were her last thoughts before a bomb suddenly went off inside the living room.

* * *

2nd chapter. Hope you liked it ^^

* * *

**Omake #2: Chrome's Thoughts**

Meanwhile, Chrome was running urgently back to Kokuyo Land. Her boots clicked on the pavement as she hurried, her concentration interrupted only by Mukuro.

_"Ah. You look like you're feeling better, my cute Chrome."_

"Oh! Mukuro-sama," she exclaimed, feeling almost shameful. Accidentally, their connection had gotten cut off by her emotions. When she had seen her mom, she had just panicked. He probably didn't know what was going on at all. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that."

_"Don't worry. Rather, I'm a little concerned about something else. You seemed very upset before. Does that woman still bother you? I can end her, if you wish."_

The eyepatched girl blushed, not wanting to cause any more trouble. While it was true she still resented her mother, the one who had cast her away, she knew killing her would change nothing. In fact, she was wasting time even thinking about it. What was in the past was in the past; she couldn't let it affect her. She wasn't Nagi anymore after all. She was Chrome, Chrome Dokuro.

She just needed a good cry to let it all out.

"No. I'm fine now," Chrome said finally. She could almost see Mukuro smile wryly, no doubt bemused by her innocence.

_"I see. Well, no matter," _he shrugged, seeing the issue as solved._ "Did anything interesting happen?"_

"I met someone," she admitted. "She had gotten lost, so I helped her a little."

_"Oh? A friend, perhaps?" _he teased.

She stopped in the middle of a path. Blinking, the words repeated themselves in her head, as though posing an entirely new idea to her.

"A friend..." she echoed.

She started walking now, but still pondered over Mukuro's words. Kicking past brushes and trees, the girl looked up at the forest, remembering the time she spent with that girl. It was... different. Tamaki was a lot like boss, except a bit tougher looking, but he was just an acquaintance. At the same time, however, she didn't really fit into Ken and Chikusa's category either. They were much closer to her than that.

But this one... what did she see her as?

At that moment, Chrome suddenly remembered how willingly that girl listened to her. How she waited for her tears to stop falling. How that branch fell on her head and they laughed. How they waited under the doorstep patiently.

"UUUUGGGGGLLLLLYYYYYY!" Ken's voice called not too far off. "WHHHEERRRREEE AAARRREEE YOOOUUUUUUU!"

As she heard the boys thrash about nearby, Chrome was lost deep in her thoughts. Then, a small smile lit across her face, reflected by the moonlight's edge.

"Yes," she replied back, turning to meet her new family. "I met a friend today."


	3. A Night at the House of Sawada

Chapter 3: A Night at the House of Sawada

Normally, when you go to a stranger's house, you usually don't expect much. It's almost like going to your grandparent's place (unless that grandparent happened to be Tama's). Maybe a little tea, some cookies, and then you just meet people and talk for a while. It's _supposed_ to be plain. It's_ supposed_ to be simple. It's _supposed_ to be _safe._

But, apparently, this time it wasn't any of that. No, instead, what Tama got... was _this._

"..."

"..."

"..."

Tama sat cross legged in the center of the room, her eye twitching like nonstop from the current occurrence of that day: bombing. Her hair's fringes were slightly burned. Her clothing was torn up on the edges. Her skin smelled like crusty ash. Slowly, she breathed in and out, trying to get to a calmer place where every day _wasn't _something out of a complete living hell.

The headache swirling inside her brain wasn't really helping though.

"U-Um... Are you ok?" a timid voice asked. "You don't look so good."

Meanwhile, a pair of brown worried eyes peered down at Tama. She slit a glare up at him, getting a little annoyed. That same damned question was just asked two minutes ago, and the bubbly concern was getting on her nerves. Lowering her head, she muttered curses to herself before answering back.

"Yeah..." finally replied the young girl, who was digging her nails into her forehead. "It's just a migraine. Thanks anyways, Sawada."

Sawada Tsunayoshi, as the brunette had introduced himself before, gave a nervous smile and sat back against the wall. Though he looked weak, you could tell he understood people. Fixing the loosely fitting T-shirt on his torso, he had the sense to be quiet and leave her the hell alone.

It'd be nice if other people could take the hint too.

"Oi! Show more respect, you bitch," growled a low voice, threatening in every shade and manner. "Who do you think you are, showing your face here after yesterday? Any more disrespect, and I'll end you."

This comment came from a person in front of Tama, the punkish smoker with the white hair. His name was Gokudera Hayato, and he had sharp green eyes that, if they could, would burn her alive. For some reason, their vibes just didn't seem to mesh well together, and the only person he was nice to was Tsuna (who he called "Tenth" for some bizarre reason.)

He especially didn't like her for one particular reason.

Remember that time when she crashed into the bushes while roller skating on her first day? Well, apparently Tsuna was the unfortunate person she crashed into. It figures that Gokudera would be there with him too.

"I'd like to see you try," she replied dryly, folding her arms. She was getting really tired of this. The word 'sorry' must have been mentioned at least thirty times. How long did he hold a grudge for? "And I already apologized! Geez, just because you're in a PMSing mood doesn't mean that you can take it out on me, dork. "

Sawada sucked in some air, his cheeks losing color by the second. He had a good reason to be worried too. In no time at all, Tama's collar was yanked up, with Gokudera's scowl butting in front of her face. His face was tightened up and looked very pissed.

"You stupid bitch! You want to die?" he roared.

"Bring it on!" she hissed, feeling a nerve splinter.

Tsuna squealed as the two fighters got ready to duke it out. Then, the situation diffused as someone firmly pushed away Gokudera's fingers from her neck. It was a black haired boy, one that was really tall and had spiky hair. Oddly enough, there also was a cheerful grin plastered on his face that seemed way out of place. It was as if he thought they were all just mere two year olds at the playground and not fully grown teens ready to smash each other's skulls in.

"Ok! Ok! Calm down, you two!" he chided them. "It all worked out in the end, right?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Sawada added in, his face pale. "Please! It's ok, Gokudera. She did nothing wrong! Sawada, or even Tsuna's fine too! It's much better. Just.. don't fight... please..."

Gokudera hesitated. Then, he sullenly looked away to glare and hiss at the black haired kid, Yamamoto Takeshi. Armed with a goofball grin and a charisma that would put optimism to shame, he didn't look fazed in the least, and Tama almost found it amazing. She wondered how the guy could look so damned carefree in this situation.

"Fine," she and Gokudera grumbled.

Taking a seat, the little girl plopped back down on the stale carpet. Gokudera did the same, with Sawada collapsing next to Yamamoto in relief. So, with that now established, the three of them sat in an uneasy silence, like people awaiting for a bomb to go off.

...

"So..." Yamamoto finally brightly started, directing his attention that the newcomer. "Your name's Tama-chan, wasn't it? It's nice to meet you. What brings you here?"

Tama looked up briefly, with the "-chan" sort of putting her off. It was weird to hear it at the end of her name. Not many people called her by that anymore. She was too used to "-san" or just simply "Subaru." The cuteness of the other suffix though didn't seem to really fit her at all.

"Well, it's kind of a long story," she sighed, going back to the original question. "I guess... I'll start with Chrome. She's your friend, right? Well, we kinda met when I got lost. I asked for directions, and she brought me here instead. Sorry to just barge in like this, but I'll take any help I can get."

"No no. That's fine. It's not like we're not used to visitors or anything," Tsuna awkwardly laughed. Somehow, it seemed to Tama like those 'visitors' weren't the good kind either, from the way he said it. "But where do you live? Is it here in Namimori?"

Tama put her arms behind her head and nodded. "Ah huh. I transferred schools 'cause my old one sucked. But it's too far from where my old home was. So, I'm renting an apartment here for now."

"I see," a pipsqueak's voice suddenly butted in, almost smoothly. "Well, welcome. Make yourself comfortable here at Tsuna's expense."

The sound made everyone's heads lift up, and (quite awkwardly, might Tama add) the four of them found themselves staring at a... kid.

No. Scratch that. A _baby_.

Yes, as hard as it was to believe, (and trust me, Tama was having a bad time of it) there was a two foot high little baby sitting in front of them, with a mischievous smirk that came right out of _the Godfather. _He had the outfit to go with it too, dressed to the nines in what looked like an Italian suit and showing off cute curled side-burns. The little brat looked like casino pit boss from Atlanta with a crazy spin. The only things out of character were the pacifier hanging around his neck and the chameleon staring at her from the rim of the hat.

But. More importantly:

WHEN THE HELL DID HE SNEAK IN?

"Ciossu," he greeted with a friendly smile. "Welcome to the Sawada household."

"Reborn!" Tsuna yelled, with Yamamoto grinning in the background. "Don't scare us like that! You could have given us a heart attack."

The young brunette shoved his head in his hands and grimaced. Tama couldn't help but notice his pained expression too, as if he were seeing death incarnate itself. The poor kid looked like he just wanted to crawl into a deep, dark corner and just cry for a bit.

"Is he your little brother?" she asked curiously. If so, then she could definitely relate. All of her relatives were a pain and completely nuts. In fact, the entire damned family tree was so screwed up that she felt like she was adopted sometimes.

"Something like that," was the reluctant reply.

"Anyways," the kid named 'Reborn' smirked. "I overheard your conversation with Dame-Tsuna here. So I take it you've already met Hibari, Tama-chan?"

Tama glared sorely back, hoping to scare him off. It bugged her that the little snot was being so familiar with her. Again with the damned "-chan." Kids were such trouble. Butting into the conversation like that... and who the hell was 'Hibari' anyways? What rotten luck to come when Sawada was babysitting.

"Never heard of him," she gruffly replied, propping her chin up with her hand. "Why should I?"

"He's the king of pricks at the school." Surprisingly, Gokudera was the one to answer this time. He made it sound like she was stupidest person for not knowing. "The head prefect too. Even if you're a newbie, you should know him."

You never saw Tama's head pop up faster than it did. Her ears were twitching at the word 'prefect' like she was one of Pavolv's dogs, and she stared at Gokudera. The image of her current stalker floated to mind. Maybe... Maybe she did meet him!

"Black hair? Slanty eyes? Tonfas?" she asked, not stopping for a single breath.

"Huh. So you _do _know him then."

Oh, yes. They were _very _acquainted. Her lips curled over, and a low hiss escaped from between her teeth as Tama suddenly got a murderous look on her face. Everything tightened up inside, from her muscles to her damn bones. All of the sores from earlier seemed to come out in full force too, searing under her skin.

It didn't take a rocket scientist for the boys to know that it was a touchy subject.

"U-Um... Tama-chan," Tsuna hesitantly asked. "Are you-"

"Hibari. So, that's his name then, huh?" she muttered darkly. The brunette quietly took a step back and ducked Yamamoto. Even Gokudera looked surprised, staring with some terror at a pitch-black aura that had suddenly sprouted around her. Funny. It almost looked like something out of a really weird anime.

"H-hey... " he voiced, the cigarette falling out of his mouth. "Is that supposed to happen?"

Tama completely ignored him, too busy wishing death threats under her breath. With the added fuel of his name, her hatred rose along with the aura. She still couldn't forgive him, after all. Everything was_ his_ fault. The crappy end to her first day, the trip to the principal's office, the part where she got lost in the woods, the self-loathing... _all his fault_.

His wretched existence was a pain. She had to end him!

"So, I take it you've been acquainted?" Reborn interrupted, with a hint of amusement.

Tama's aura fizzed away as he smirked up at her. With a sigh, she slowly nodded, huddled up into a curled ball of vengeance.

"Yeah. Pretty much," she grumbled. "Ugh... I can't stand him either! All I do is give him the finger, that's all! And yet, the little psycho decides to come running after and murder my ass. And who cares about a damned nap anyways! I should call the cops on... what's with those looks?"

Her rant fell short when she caught sight of their faces. The largest range of them too, by far. Reborn had a pleased smirk. Gokudera looked like he had swallowed a bug. Tsuna nearly fainted from being so pale. Yamamoto's scared her though. His smile wilted to an uneasy frown, and he tried to hide it with a laugh but... no go.

And if the king of optimism was looking bad, then she _knew _that something was wrong.

"W-What..." she defended.

Tsuna took a deep breath and placed his hands on her shoulders. Firmly. His eyes also were coated over with a pity-laced film, and the other two boys nodded grimly. It was as if they were saying "a shame the good die young." Needless to say, they weren't giving her good vibes. Not at all. Tama shifted nervously, getting a really bad feeling about all this.

"Tama-chan..." Tsuna said, his puppy dog eyes drooping. "I think we should tell you some things."

* * *

**Forty minutes later...**

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

For the first time in a very long time, the house was completely silent. There were no bombings. No screams. None of the chaos that had raged before. Instead, the four teens sat around the comfy table, all quiet like the inside of a funeral home. Tama, who was the most stunned out of all of them, stared at her tea numbly, watching the green liquid swirl around. It kind of looked like how the pit of her stomach felt right now: swaying, disturbed, and rocking uneasily.

Yep. She knew it. Bad feeling all around.

"You're shitting me," she breathed, trying to not hyperventilate on the spot.

"We're not," Gokudera heartlessly informed, looking somewhat irritated. "There's no other way to put it: you managed to piss off the worst person possible. I suggest you start making your will now, stupid woman. I'll even help with the wake, if you'd like."

"Gokudera!" Tsuna exclaimed with horror.

"Now, come on," Yamamoto chipped in, trying to make the situation lighter. "Hibari's not that bad. He's just... misunderstood. I think."

"Baseball idiot, I think that's the understatement of the year," the smoker deadpanned. "He's just deranged. No other way to put it."

While the two of them bantered, Tama unconsciously swallowed the bitter leaves in her tea. It really felt like some crazy dream to her. Like Alice in Wonderland, but the Mad Hatter wore a fedora and the tea party was in Japanese. Oh, and the evil Queen of Hearts somehow changed genders too.

Seriously, though. I mean, how many people can say that they've just flipped the finger to the scariest man on the face of the planet? Forget just being a prefect. That guy was the king of whole Namimori! The head delinquent, the ruler of the underground, the face of evil... and she just flipped him off.

Swell. Really swell.

"Tch!"

Throwing her head up, Tama downed the tea like sake, her cheeks turning a rosy red from the steam. She didn't like the way this conversation was going. At this rate, just the rumors themselves were gonna crush her. She had to get her confidence back. So how?

Simple: boasting.

So, blowing out a long sigh, the midget of a girl boldly declared, "So what! Then I'll just beat him"

All of a sudden, all the bickering fell silent. Tsuna choked on a riceball, and Gokudera, who was in the middle of insulting Yamamoto, looked at her as if she were insane.

"W-What..."

"If you got a situation, you face it," she explained. The edge of her blouse's sleeve was used to wipe her mouth, which still felt warm from the tea. "If I can't escape him, then I'll just break him. Simple as that."

"Hey, do you even know what you're saying?" Gokudera scowled. "What can a pipsqueak like you do?"

Surprisingly, before Tama could retort back, her support came from the most unlikely person: Reborn. He held up a hand for silence, and everyone shut up immediately. Almost respectfully even. Tama would have had a good giggle about it if the serious attitude didn't put a damper on things.

"I think she can handle it," Reborn smirked, reaching inside his coat. "However, if you ever need help, we're experienced when it comes to Hibari. Ask Dame-Tsuna, and he'll come to your rescue, ok?"

"Don't drag me into this!" Tsuna wailed.

He was dutifully ignored as Reborn gave her a piece of scrap paper with seven numbers scribbled on it. She nodded, and for the first time that day, that confidence she looked for was found. Maybe it was because of how sincere he sounded. Or that knowing look that seemed way too old for a mere one year old. But either way, it worked.

"Thanks, kiddo," she murmured, pocketing it. "I'll keep that in mind."

The weight of the paper felt light in her pocket, kind of like her heart right now, and once again, the four of them sat around the small, short table. This time, though, the atmosphere was much brighter and less like someone had died (or was going to, for that matter).

"Well," Reborn stated, giving a little cough. "It's far too late for us to walk you home now. Stay here for the night. You can take Tsuna's bed, if you want."

The brunette glared at him, looking like he wanted to strangle the kid from the neck.

"Reborn. Stop talking! PLEASE," Tsuna moaned, sliding his head into his hands once again.

Everyone laughed, and Tama became swept by the whole light atmosphere. She looked out at the pitch-black night, which was lit by only stars and the crescent moon, and nodded in agreement. For now, she'd stay. After all, rest was needed. Hibari was probably going to show up early in the morning, and it was going to be another _looong _day.

But at least now she didn't feel nearly as bad as before. So what if her opponent was a demon straight from hell? She could handle it. With a wide grin, she clutched her hand close to her heart, which beat with a new resolution. Then, while everyone chatted once again, she whispered under her breath:

"I told you, old hag. I'll be the best."

* * *

Chapter 3 end.

Tada~ Hope you liked it. Btw, this is a super long omake that I was originally gonna put in the story, but it didn't seem to fit too well with the flow of the plotline. Please enjoy it.

* * *

**Omake #3: Epic Ranking Fail**

So.

With the now official statement from Tsuna's mom that she was staying the night, ("Oh, of course you can sleep over! It'll be fun, like when Tsu-kun brought his little friends when he was three!" "Mom...") Tama hunkered down in the spare guest room. She was a bit uncomfortable, though. Not that anything was wrong with the room itself. The decor was pretty, with blue washed walls and dainty white curtains. The beds were soft and very cosy. Even the carpet was nice and soft, perfect for bare feet.

No. The problem was... it was just a bit crowded.

"Guypaii! Lambo-san is here!"

Tama stared as a little brat in a cow jumpsuit started running around the room, with a 'fro that puffed out of his head at least two feet. He was really annoying, and a little Chinese girl around the same age chased him, calling after in a broken Japanese. The other boys were here too, all watching the ruckus from a distance.

"Lambo! Stop disturbing guest!" the girl ordered, finally jumping him.

As they wrestled, Yamamoto noticed Tama's blank expression. He offered, "Hahahaha... Kids are lively as ever, huh?"

"Yeah," Tama replied back, still a little bewildered. It looked like things were only going to get even crazier. Still, what was even more amazing was the fact that they could fit this many people in one house. Guess that explained all the noise. "By the way, are all you guys Sawada's relatives?"

"No, but you're on the right track," he grinned, scratching his head. "We're Tsuna's or the kid's friends. Gokudera and I live at our own places though."

"Wait, so why are you still here?"

"Well, 'cause we originally planned to have a get together here for the night. Don't worry. We're sleeping in Tsuna's room."

"Oh."

"Speaking of which, I should probably introduce you to everyone," he grinned. "That kid with the afro over there is Lambo. The girl is I-Pin. Oh, and this one's Fuuta."

"Huh? Who's Fuuta-"

That was when she suddenly found herself staring down at a little, brown haired runt. Not just any runt either. Out of all of them, he definitely was the cutest. A huge, oversized scarf was wrapped around his neck, and his big puppy eyes immediately gave her the impressive that he was Sawda's illegitimate son. (She'd never say that of course) He was also carrying a huge book with him, one that looked even bigger than the kid himself.

"So, you're Tama-nee?" he beamed with sparkly eyes.

"Um... yeah... I think," she replied hesitantly. She really didn't know what to say. First "-chan" and now "-nee." It was kind of adorable, though, to be called "big sister" by such a cute human being. Even her grouchiness had its limits.

"Wow! It's just like the rankings say!" he giggled, earning a blank stare.

"He does ratings for people," Tsuna explained. "It's a way for him to pass the time."

"Really?" Tama smiled, getting interested. "Tell me mine, won't you?"

"Sure!" he chirped happily. "Since you're Tsuna-nii's new friend and all."

A hazy look suddenly fell over his eyes, like he became disconnected with the world. Then, something really freaky started when everything started floating.

Upward.

_WHAT?_

She panicked as her body got lighter and flew to the ceiling and nearly collided with I-Pin's and Lambo's. Meanwhile, all the boys down below were watching stupidly as she flailed.

"W-WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON?" she managed to spit out. "HELP!"

"Just go with it!" Yamamoto laughed from down below, not noticing her terror too well. "You're probably so light that you got caught up into the wind turbine. He uses it for effect. Kid's toys are so realistic these days!"

"That's not-" Tsuna practically screamed, his voice drowned out by Fuuta's talking.

"Tama-nii is ranked twentieth out of two thousand for the most reckless and headstrong personalities..." he said in a drone-like voice.

Well, that was sort of possible. When she found Tsuna staring up at her, she gave a shrug and left it at that.

"She also is number two in the 'People who would cry during Jane Erye category..."

Covering her hands with her mouth, Tama became floored that this little half-pint actually found her weakness: cute, girly-soap opera like movies. She wondered what gave it away. Damn, he was sharp.

Gokudera snickered in the background.

"And finally," Fuuta went on, his eyes still blinking. "the number one person destined as Tama-chan's soulmate is... "

Everyone waited on the edge of their seats. Well, what was left of them, anyways. Tama was currently clutching the remaining stool as she stared at Fuuta.

"Rokudo Mukuro."

"!"

"!"

"!"

"!"

At that moment, it was like a declaration of death was given. Tsuna's eyes pinched into small, horrified marbles. Gokudera, who was previously sipping some soda, spat it out in a fit of shock. Even the kids looked stunned, all the bickering from before now utterly silent.

Leave it to Yamamoto to start laughing his ass off.

"Hahahaha... Wow! Who would've thought?" he chuckled cheerfully.

"I-It's not funny, you baseball idiot!" Gokudera sputtered.

THUD.

Of course, all of this was ignored as the unlucky girl plummeted to the ground. It could have been her imagination, but she thought she heard some bones cracking in the process. Being hers, of course. She didn't even pay attention to all the commotion, missing Tsuna nearly swoon from horror.

"Rokudo Mukuro..." he echoed, his face as pale as a sheet. "Of all people... please tell me it was raining outside. PLEASE!"

Gokudera quickly yanked the curtains aside to a magnificent downpour flooding the streets. There was thunder, rain, lightning... all the good stuff that usually scared the living crap out of people. Yet, after they saw that, all of their shoulders sagged down in relief. Tsuna, most of all. The poor kid looked like he was going to die from all the excitement.

Tama took that as her cue to go beddy bye.

"Ok..." she declared, putting her hands up. "Screw this! I'm going to sleep!"

And that was how her night at the Sawada household ended.


	4. I Lost?

Chapter 4: I... Lost?

Cold.

It was friggin' cold.

That was the first thing Tama thought that morning as she trudged sullenly up the hill. Up above, a gusty wind blasted like an AC from God, freezing her to the point where the jacket was already plastered to her goose bumped skin. She could see the temple ahead, but, of course, it offered no comfort. The solid wooden doors were locked, and it probably wouldn't open even if you used a crowbar.

The sky grinned down on Tama like the little shit it was, ready to send a downpour on her.

"Don't you dare," hissed the pissed fourteen-year old.

In response, thunder clasped in the distance. Then, it rained. Really badly. Tama felt her right eye twitch as the drops splattered on her face. Too busy stomping angrily around in the slushy mud, she didn't even notice as someone sneaked up from behind and chuckled softly.

"You know, if you keep doing that everyone's gonna think you're nuts," a scratchy voice said, sounding amused.

Tama spun around, only to find an older woman's back facing her. Unlike the girl, though, she was much more relaxed. Elbows supported by the temple's step's railing, her appearance was lax, like that of a person who really didn't give a shit about anything anymore. Her head faced up to the rain, so that the only parts of her face revealed were the drenched white locks glued to her head.

"You're the only one who can see me, so what's the big deal?" Tama snorted. With a big huff, she leaned against the other side of the railing in a likewise fashion, just in a more sour mood. Leave it to that old hag to call out a meeting when the weather was so crappy. Just because she loved nature didn't mean everyone did.

"So, what'd you call me out for?" Tama muttered, shifting the jacket over her head.

The old hag didn't answer at first. So, for a couple of minutes, all the two could hear was the song of the bitchy rain. It wasn't pleasant for sure. Tama almost felt like yelling for her to stop being so damned mysterious when she finally began to talk.

"Hey, kid. Tell me: wanna still be the best?"

Tama's head turned to face Sensei's gaze. Her eagle eyes glared at her sharply, as if to say "Well, what the hell are you waiting for?" She beckoned with her hands for an answer. The problem was: Tama really didn't know what to say. She knew the words but... why was it that she felt like there needed to be something more?

Not sure what to do, she settled for a firm nod.

At this, a faint ghost of a grin stretched across the woman's face. It was mixed with a foreign expression though, one that Tama couldn't figure out. Sakura petals were torn apart by the rabid wind, like afterthoughts from a cheesy movie as they stared at each other, the one ancient and the other young. Then, Sensei's teeth shone as she laughed, the sound echoing into the booming storm.

"Hehehe...Well, then," she chuckled, sounding amused. "Prove it to me. Brat."

* * *

Dream end.

Although, in a certain way it really didn't. Because as Tama's eyes snapped open, that bloody rain was still there. It looked slimy and gross against the grey sky, the sort of thing that made her shudder. Giving a look of disdain, she curled over to the other side and groaned.

"Ugh... I hate rain."

The girl sat up, with the sheets twisted around her legs. They were like think ropes that hindered more than helped. Feeling annoyed, she pulled them up around her torso and rubbed her forehead. It was even light out yet, and she was already up, sulking over a little drizzle.

What a pain.

"I wonder though..." she muttered, her head resting on the pillow. "I wonder what Sensei's doing about now."

Lying down on the bed, thinking, she imagined the old hag's face from back then, all wrinkled, wet, and weird. She always was so unreadable, like a closed book under lock and key. Not to mention crazy. Back when they trained together, Tama used to get 2:30 in the morning spontaneous wake up calls via a bucket of water. With all of Sensei's oddities though, she wished she could see her now. She was starting to get a bit homesick.

Actually, there were actually a lot of things in general she missed from being up in the mountains. For one thing, they were out in the open and not claustrophobic little streets. It was quiet up there too. All she had ever heard from the city was noise, and her head wasn't adjusting to it well. Oh, and the nice thing about being so high up was that you barely saw people, much less the crazy ones like ax happy Hibari Kyoya.

Which reminded her. Since she was being so pompous last night, didn't that mean she'd have to fight Hibari today?

"..."

A pit suddenly formed inside her stomach.

"Oh no."

At that moment, the emotions that _should _have come yesterday began to hit her. Tama swallowed hard, her feelings becoming a deadly tonic of useless anticipation and regret. There were these stupid questions that kept popping up in her head, like "What if he wins?" or "How are you going to beat a frickin' _monster_?" They made her want to hide under the covers and just stay there for a bit. In fact, she probably would've done just that if it wasn't for the fact that she'd be branded a coward.

_"Wanna still be the best?"  
_

Tama blinked, the sentence from that rainy day resounding within her head. They offered a bit of food for thought in her fears, and she quietly pondered over their meaning.

The way that Sensei had said that almost sounded weird. They sounded empty, hollow. Not exactly concerned, but it was almost as if she was confused. Why would she ask anyways? It wasn't like she really cared about anything.

Could it... could it be that Sensei doubted that she could do it?

...

The thought of that made Tama growl. Her fingernails dug into the pillow next to her, scratching with irritation.

So, that old hag had no faith in her then? Was all that training with her for nothing? All those battles she went through just won by chance? She couldn't accept that. Even if Tama was small and weak looking, she couldn't bear being looked down on. And if she couldn't make her teacher think she was strong, then there was only one thing to do.

"Prove it," she stated.

Tama sat up on the bed, with the darkness of the room shadowing her face. Looking down at her hands, the girl traced the bruises on them, signs of her mark as "undefeated." So far, no one was able to beat her since that day. She'd keep it that way too. Hibari was only human, a mere stepping stone up her climb to victory.

And she'd conquer him.

"Prove it," she repeated, a scowl reappearing on her face. "Fine. You want your damned proof? I'll give it to you! Don't underestimate me, you old hag."

With that, Tama rushed to get ready, the rain pushed to the back of her mind.

* * *

Meanwhile.

An hour later, a little assembly of sleepy, PJ wearing males was found staring at her made bed. Gokudera looked completely unconcerned as usual, and Yamamoto just glanced at it, still half-passed out. Tsuna was really worried though. He knew_ exactly_ where Tama was, and he didn't need hyper intuition to tell him that this was bad.

The note left behind wasn't exactly calming him either.

_Dear Sawada and Co._

_Thank you very much for the information on Hibari and, probably more importantly, letting me mooch here for the night. I'll pay you back someday; I swear it. But, anyways. I went ahead to the school to find that prefect and settle this once and for all. If you need me, I'll be around._

_Thanks again._

_-Tamaki Subaru_

"So she really was serious," Gokudera yawned.

"It'll be ok," Yamamoto tried to smile, though you could tell his optimism was getting a bit dim. "I think."

Meanwhile, their fifteen year old boss went into panic mode, nearly clawing his hair out at the seams.

WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?

Honestly, he just couldn't understand a girl like that. Why was she so stubborn? He told her specifically not to do anything (that is, before Reborn whacked him on the side of the head with a hammer), and what does she do? She goes. Most _guys_ against Hibari would get beaten, but Tama... Tama was a _girl_! A tiny, middle school girl who didn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of surviving. Sure, there was some spunk to her_, _but to go against _him_, of all people..._  
_

Crap. Looked like matters had to be taken into his hands again.

With a resigned sigh, Tsuna dug his hand into his pockets. The hard plastic box of his Dying Will capsules scraped against his palm, a parting gift from Basil after the Ring Battles. His 27 mittens were in his bag too. It was bad that it came down to this. He hated fighting but...

"Ok," he finally told his two friends. "We'll have to hurry and break them up."

"You mean... we're gonna help that brat?" Gokudera asked in disbelief.

Tsuna nodded firmly. He knew that the smoker and Tama didn't get along too well. More than once, Tsuna had intervene in their fights just so the house wouldn't get destroyed. But, this was serious. It was times like these that his authority actually came in handy.

"Then, let's go!" Yamamoto cheerfully declared, slinging his bat over his shoulder. "Count me in."

He grinned, as if they were just going to play a round of baseball instead of facing against a monster. Gokudera was still pretty unenthusiastic but pitched in anyways. With a 'tch,' he took out two sticks of dynamite from his belt and grinned. He probably was more happy about the opportunity to smash Hibari's face in more than anything else.

Whatever the case may be though, the two were on board. He just hoped they'd make it in time.

* * *

Tama's heart was pounding.

It throbbed through her chest, beating erratically like a bomb that was about to set off at any moment. Her courage seemed to have dwindled down since leaving the house too, and now she was nervous as ever. Pellets of rain hit her umbrella in the meantime, with sour clouds looming overhead. They made her even uneasier, as if signaling a dark premonition.

Great. Like was what she needed right now. More bad luck.

Oh, and to top it all off when she actually got to the school... do you know those scenes in horror movies where a place that's_ supposed_ to look innocent actually is where the main character gets slashed/hacked/raped/_ripped_ apart etc? Well, that was the sort of vibe that she was getting from here. And let me tell you, the feeling was not pleasant.

It only got worse when she saw Hibari standing at the entrance of the school.

"Oh...?"

The prefect spied her a good distance away. However, the connection was instant. She gulped when that sinister smirk graced his face once more, and ever so subtlety his hands slipped into his jacket to get his tonfas. It was very scary how he looked at that moment, like a jaguar when it spies a mouse. Swallowing her fear, she came closer and resisted the urge to go chicken.

"Hm..." Hibari murmured curiously. "You're not running, herbivore?"

The grip tightened on her umbrella. At once, that uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach grew. Seeing the guy in flesh again made her really nervous now. The way his eyes glinted, the difference the height, the way he just sort of gave off that evil aura... they all reminded her who she was facing: Satan incarnate in the flesh.

_"Wanna be the best?"_

However, those words reminded her of her purpose. There was no other way. She stood, straight and firm for the sake of her pride. Just to be a ham, she also tilted her head up and made a sneer, trying to look fierce.

Probably didn't do anything, but oh well.

"Why should I?" she scoffed. "I was scared before 'cause you caught me off guard. Simple as that. But this time..."

...

A beat of silence passed, with the sound of pattering rain filling the space between them. Her glare hardened, and she threw the umbrella behind her, letting it fall into the bushes. A deep breath was taken, the final moment coming closer.

_"Wanna be the best?"_

"This time... I'll crush you!"

In a quick flash, Tama darted out in the soggy rain to punch him. The attack got blocked by his tonfas though. Hibari looked surprised, but his eyebrows fluttered down at once in a calm, calculating manner.

The beast had awakened.

"A little cocky, aren't you?" he coldly growled. "The prey shouldn't get her role mixed up with the hunter's. I'll bite you to death."

A split second later, the tonfa came swinging down to amputate her arm. Unexpectedly, though, instead of blocking it, she squat down and tackled his legs. They went down, with Tama effortlessly securing her position. Water splashed everywhere as she arm locked his head tightly.

WHAM.

Then just like that, their positions suddenly changed. Hibari landed a hit on her face, and he got on top of her, grinning evilly as she squirmed. Both of his tonfas now were pushed up against her neck, suffocating like a leather cord biting into her skin.

"Wao... Ju-jitsu?" he guessed, looking very smug.

Tama didn't answer. Instead, she voted in favor of kicking her leg up into his thigh. Distracted, Hibari accidentally let her loose to block it. Now back on her feet, the adrenaline started pumping faster than ever. She got into a rythmn, a deadly dance between two fighters.

BAM!

CLANG!

Their two images grew fuzzy as they started hand to hand combat fighting. The tide wasn't in her favor, however. Hibari kept swinging the weapons around, barely giving her enough time to dodge them. Even worse, the rain wasn't helping. It took all her balance to make sure she didn't land head-first into a puddle.

She had to think of something and _fast._

"O-Oh shit!"

Fortunately, or unfortunately if you look at it, her inspiration came in the lamest way possible. Right when Hibari swung his arm down, her foot slid and she did a split. That was when she went straight into a puddle.

SPLASH!

Now drenched worse than ever before, the girl sat on the soggy ground. Better yet, Hibari didn't give breaks. She was barely able to tumble out of the way when he attacked again. Right at that moment, though, the jacket on his shoulders flew up to the side, with its sleeves flailing in mid-air.

That was when it hit her.

A plan finally coming to mind, Tama rolled to her feet and focused. Everything was ready. She positioned her foot next to the puddle from two seconds ago, waiting for her chance. Hibari charged straight for her, flying through the rain. He came closer... closer... until it was just right. Then, she foot sweeped.

SPLASH!

Sure enough, a tidal wave of water hit his face, blurring his vision temporarily. Perfect. Tama immediately took his blind spot. She snatched the jacket from behind his shoulders by the arm sleeves. Looped the cloth loosely around his neck, she took them by the reins.

Then, she yanked them cross wise.

"!"

Hibari never saw it coming. The sleeves squeezed around his neck as a makeshift noose, and in no time at all, Tama had the upper hand. The prefect squirmed, gaping as she pulled even harder. All the traces of what he looked like before now vanished. There was no more badass attitude. No more Mr. Wiseguy. No more "I'm the right hand of justice and I'll stomp you flat" type of talk.

No, because now she finally was in power. Tama grinned with satisfaction, almost tasting victory on her tongue. It seemed so sweet. For a moment she was lulled into a smug sense of security, as if nothing could stop her now.

However, stuff like this never stayed for long. In all honesty, she really should have figured that something like this would happen from the get go, considering how crazy her life had been so far. But, seeing as how it was _her _we were talking about, lessons like that weren't exactly easily learned.

So what crushed her dream? Simple:

She got pwned by one inch high, fluffy little bird.

* * *

...

Well, ok. Maybe putting it like that isn't exactly right. That made her sound like a pansy. How about... aerial artillery came down out of nowhere, jabbed at her forehead, and managed to distract her long enough to let Hibari get away.

...

You know what? Never mind. That sounded even stupider than before.

"Midori tanabiku namimori no... Dai naku shou naku nami ga ii. Itsumo kawaranu... Sukoyaka kenage aah, tomo ni utaou Namimori chuu~"

Anyways, the point_ was_ that in the middle of her strangling fest, something suddenly started to sing Namimori Jr. High's school anthem. It was then that she made her first mistake: she looked up. To her utter and complete confusion, there was a tiny yellow bird flying over her head in the middle of the storm. It fought against the rain and kept singing, its high voice chirping all the way.

The little guy would have looked cute if it didn't suddenly take a nose dive at her.

"!"

Accidentally, Tama made her second mistake, which was by far worse than the first one. She let go of Hibari to shield herself. It was only for a second, just enough to block the onslaught of pecks aimed at her. However, a second was the only thing needed.

So, that, my dear friends, was all she wrote.

Shhhhhrrrkkkkk!

Tama heard the sickening crack of broken bone as an angry tonfa slammed into her shoulder. The shock of it hit instantly and sent her tumbling away. She was surprised, almost breathless from the sheer pain. She tumbled down, the advantage now lost.

Meanwhile, Hibari was back on his feet. Loosening his neck, he grimaced and reached for the jacket that laid on the pavement. The bird that had attacked her earlier also rested on his shoulder, chirping loyally "Hibari! Hibari!"

...

Well, that was dirty. Since when were pets allowed to fight?

"You cheated!" she accused.

WHAM!

TINNGG!

Unfortunately, Hibari didn't seem to be in a talking mood. Another tonfa flew and lodged itself into the school's wall behind her. It stuck out of the wall as she stared. She had to act fast. Tama went to move, using the wall for support.

But it didn't work.

"!"

For whatever reason, she couldn't move through the pain. Her right shoulder was now searing, and it took all of her willpower to just not scream. She fell to her knees and found that her vision got super blurry too. Everything now was colored in grey, blue, and black. The only thing she could see was Hibari, who stood above her.

"Hn... well, it was fun while it lasted," his smooth voice shrugged. "Oh well."

The silvery outline of the tonfa was raised, ready to finish her off. Her eyes widened.

_No... _she thought. _No no no no no... I can't lose. I can't! I can't!_

It swung down, coming closer and closer. She quickly shut her eyes, her insides squeezing tightening before it could hit.

Then...

nothing.

No pain.

"H-huh?" she murmured.

At that moment, something blocked the weapon, with it only inches from her face. It was metal and wrapped around a small hand. That was when the second incredible thing of that day happened. Tama got saved... and by the most unlikely of people.

Sawada Tsunayoshi.

* * *

"Stop it, Hibari."

Tsuna's voice rang within Tama's ears. She snapped her eyes wide open, and sure enough, he was there in front of her, with his arms crossed. Wearing his middle school uniform, the kid that was previously labeled as "No Good Tsuna" now was speaking on par with Hibari. The prefect looked just as surprised as her, staring at the tonfas blocked by what appeared to be... metal gloves.

...

Huh?

_Wait a minute... What was Tsuna... GLOVES?_

"OI! Stupid woman! GET DOWN!" someone yelled with impatience.

BOOM!

The ground rattled as a fury of explosives went off, probably sizable to the impact of an earthquake. Hibari's figure was sent flying backwards, and Tama was sure she would end up charcoaled along with him. However, before the flames could reach, someone grabbed her. His firm arms locked around her body, his back took the brute of the damage.

"Hahaha... that was a close one huh?" the voice laughed. "Sorry about that, Tama-chan! Gokudera sometimes goes a little overboard."

Tama blinked. She recognized that voice. Sure enough, Yamamoto's fuzzy image stared back at her. He looked a little bit worse for the wear, but that goofy grin of his was still plastered on like no tomorrow. She could see Gokudera in the distance too. That white sprout of hair was recognizable anywhere. But... there was one thing slightly different about him than before:

SINCE WHEN DID THAT JACKASS CARRY DYNAMITE?

"Take this, you tonfa bastard!" the pissed off kid roared.

SHHHH!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

In a matter of minutes, the whole blacktop turned into a war zone. There were bombs and tonfas and iron gantlets duking it out, and you really had to be there to actually believe it any of it was happening. Within in all of that madness, though, the most unbelievable thing was that they were actually, well... _winning_. With Tsuna at the center of it all, they beat back Hibari like it was nothing.

Tama would have pondered even more, but then something flew out of no where and nailed her right in the forehead. That was about the time she fell unconscious, with the world exploding from grey into white.

* * *

Chapter 4 end!

No omake this time ^^' Sorry. See you next chapter.

* * *

A/N:

Ok, so.

I'm _deeply_ sorry for the long delay. This is also unbetaed; please forgive the crude outline. I never thought it would take this long to just to finish four chapters though... As for the future ones, I'll be releasing them slowly. They'll resemble the previous ones a lot but make more sense.

Anyways, the reason why I decided to change the story like this was because:

a) Funnier ideas were found.

b) The logic really didn't make too much sense. It stilll doesn't, but hopefully it's better.

c) I can pull it into an actual KHR themed direction instead of just crack.

The chapter from 7 onward were a lot better, so I'm altering their format only slightly. I can tell you this for sure though:

_**I AM NEVER REWRITING THIS THING EVER AGAIN.**_

Even if people hate this story's guts to the core, I am NEVER revising a chapter again unless it's for fixing grammar. Because it SUCKS. Also, it's really unfair to you readers to make you constantly reread this, over and over again. But, the plotline is basically the same... maybe. Meh. I tried to add more humor.

Tell me what you guys think. Hope you liked it. If anybody wants to voice an opinion, I'm up for it. That includes criticism. No flames.

See you later.

-XxPenAndRosesxX


	5. Mafia 101

Chapter 5: Mafia 101

On top of the morning mountain, there was silence. No voices, no chirping, no sound at all was made as an elderly woman read the contents of her letter. The blue flicker of a candle illuminated her choppy white hair, which hung down uncombed, and her two piercing tiger-like eyes. The latter were as sharp as ever too. Together, those greenish-yellow orbs scanned the pale pages, creased in silence...

Which became broken when the thing violently was chucked at the nearest garbage can.

THUNK!

"The hospital. A fucking hospital she lands into!" spat the woman.

Pulling a cigarette out, she lit it over the candle while still hissing under her breath. The first smoke drowned her lungs, and her smirk softened a bit as she relaxed._ Damn what the doctors said_, she figured. Nothing curbed stress like the smooth taste of tobacco.

"And with a prefect of all things involved," she continued grouchily. "My daughter should be rolling in her grave about now."

The woman stared at the morning skyline above, puffing quietly between her lips. The grey smoke mixed into the color scheme, forming a hazy purple cloud above her head. Casually, she watched as it snaked around a sakura tree outside the window. It hadn't bloomed yet, she noticed. Not since Tamaki had left during the storm.

Seemed like forever since then.

With a thoughtful puff, Sensei perched the cigarette between her fingers. Then, she shoved her palm under her face and exhaled a cloud of smoke.

"That idiot still doesn't understand a thing," she sighed. "Does she?"

* * *

Tama had no idea what was going on.

Ok. Maybe that wasn't _entirely_ her fault. Some of the blame could lie with the painkillers. Getting jacked on morphine while acting as a pincushion for IVs could distort memory, right? Plus, hospitals tended to have that effect on people anyway. Especially when you feel like you got nailed by a concrete truck.

But seriously 'though. _What _on this_ earth_ could explain any of this?

Now by "this," she wasn't talking about landing in the hospital. God knows she did enough stupid things to warrent a trip eventually. No, that wasn't the problem at all. By "this," she meant... for Pete's sake, where should she even start? The part where Hibari Kyoya beat her to a pulp thanks to _a half foot bird_? The part where she got saved by _scrawny Sawada Tsunayoshi_? Or maybe when said savior managed to fend off Hibari using a _PAIR OF FREAKING OVEN MITTENS?_

The issue was enough to make her want to go on a monster rampage. Go figure.

_I should have never left that mountain, _she grimly decided. With an heavy sigh, Tama made a mental note to interrogate Tsuna next time. He had a lot of explaining to do, and she had plently of time to listen in this sterile, plastic bastard child of a room she was in. A small grimance was made at the shiny paint and thick blinds on the walls. The only non-white thing here was her hair and a can of soda by the table, and it was seriously messing up her head. She hated hospitals. She really did.

_"_Hopefully, I won't be here for long," she grumbled, trying to make the best out of it. She glanced down at her wrist, which was a bit nicked, but all together ok. A nurse had told her that the injuries weren't too bad. Most were superficial, cuts or bruises, and the only major worry was her shoulder. It would be in a cast but heal soon, luckily for her.

'Though, luck didn't really comfort her when she considered the worst of it all. The fact that she lost, that is.

"..."

At the thought, Tama's scowl deepened, as though a bad aftertaste lingered in her mouth. _Probably defeat_, she supposed. It wasn't something she could swallow down easy. It tasted too bitter, too unfamiliar to her. Her shoulder itched at the same time, as though to emphasize her annoyance.

"Damn."

Trying to shake it off, Tama reached for the soda, figuring it'd calm her down somewhat. _Caffiene does wonders after all_, she thought wryly. The cap clicked open under her fingernail, the sound echoing in a comforting way. The liquid sploshed down and satisfied her. With a small "ahh," she relished the cool feeling of the can on her palm.

"Ah, good morning, Senorita."

Then, Tama nearly choked as a thick, heavily accented voice interuppted the moment. Her drink fumbled on her fingertips, almost ready to tip over. Meanwhile, a smooth, strong hand held it up, its owner speaking once again.

"Careful now. Don't want that spilling."

Tama glared up at the man, who leaned over her bed with witty, dark eyes. In his hand was a clipboard; on his being was a white lab coat. Both stated his profession, as well as a name tag whose handwriting was too messy for her to read. His brown hair and weary face did a lot of the charm for him too, seeming to speak volumes of wisdom and good looks.

Though, that charm kinda died when he spoke again.

"Geez. Clumsy as ever, aren't you?" he sighed in disappointment. "And your boob size hasn't changed one bit either, Tama-chan. Same old brat."

Tama narrowed her eyes while her mind registered his annoying attitude. It seemed familar, along with that annoying suffix. Intently, she backtracked to what seemed like the stone age of memories for an answer. Then, it hit her. A picture of them arguing at the temple's threshold a year ago came to mind first before putting out a name.

Shamal.

Doctor Shamal.

As in, Sensei's old buddy from Italy who liked to harass the town girls and when he came to visit Shamal.

_Ah hell._

Suddenly, a creepy shudder iced Tama's back. She slowly slid down into the sheets, further and further until only her eyes were left to glare at the abomination and his shitty smile.

_Out of all the mother... Why is HE here? _she mentally grumbled. Now that she remembered, Shamal was that friend of Sensei's who came up every once in a blue moon, the really shady one who carried around little medical tablets. Not much was known about him, but the little knowledge she did have was enough for her to NOT want him around.

You see, even if he was a family friend, Tama never got along with the foriegn doctor. Shamal was sleezy, perverted, and came off as a "know it all" right off the bat. Oh sure, around women he tried to act cool, but under that surface was a nagging, lecturing hypocrite that pissed her off to no end. The only time he ever complimented her was on her legs, and that sentence was ended with: _"Give it a few years and I might pay you a visit, Senorita."_

Her response? She puked into the nearest toilet.

Thus: the snarkiest feud of the century was born. If it wasn't for Sensei always telling them to shut up, Tama was pretty sure they'd keep insultingly banter for hours on end.

_Huh... Speaking of which..._The young girl blinked, a thought occuring to her.

"Hey... Wait a sec. What are you doing here?" she demanded, getting suspicious. "Sensei lives two towns over. You should know that unless you failed geography back in grade school."

Shamal raised an eyebrow, looking faintly amused. "I find that highly ironic considering this is coming from a person who can't find her way out of a pickle jar. Also, I'm not lost; I just transfered here. Italy was getting a bit dull, and I wanted someplace different. A change in locations if you will. "

She snorted with a fold of her arms. "Change in locations" her ass. No one transferred all the way from Italy to Japan just to see bonsai trees. He probably got in trouble again for sexual harassment. The guy had a nasty habit of flirting too much, something she found out when they had to take a trip to the town at the bottom of the mountain. _Gotta love perverts_, she mused, reminscing when the local barmaid smashed him into a dumpster.

"Bet you got kicked out of the last hospital," Tama jeered.

A bored, almost annoyed look was flashed at her before he switched his attention back to the clipboard. Pages flipped over his fingertips, one by one as he muttered something about "troublesome, stupid kids". Finally, he offered her a purple letter, its elegant calligraphy standing out.

"Here," he said, tossing it to her lap. "It was just a coincidence, but a friend of yours got word I was stationed here. However, that's all the favors I'm doing for you. I'm not your attending doctor, and there's other, much prettier patients who would enjoy my company more."

_Yeah, if they were drunk,_ were her thoughts at that. With all the childishness in the world, Tama stuck her tongue out as he turned to walk away.

"Besides," he continued, either not noticing the gesture or ignoring it. "I believe you have a visitor. Entertain him."

With flair, Shamal jerked the sliding door open. Much to Tama's surprise, someone actually stumbled out. She cringed as he hit the floor while the Italian doctor took his leave. He stepped caulously over the body, waving with an informal "bye" as he made his way out.

"How considerate," she sarcastically called.

Shaking her head, Tama turned back to the boy, who was identified (quite bewilderedly) as Tsuna. Her eyebrows nearly flew off her face.

He looked nothing like before. Weak and scrawny looking, the poor kid didn't look like he could even stand a chance in a fight, much less against Hibari. In fact, awkwardly enough, her savior now was chanting a bunch of "ows" under his breath. She scunched her eyebrows quizically at the display, remembering how badass he HAD looked a few days ago.

_This_ was the guy who saved her ass from Hibari? Somebody pinch her; she must be dreaming.

"Tsuna?" she tried.

The boy stirred before his eyes turned wide at her. She was intently staring at him, partially in disbelief and the other in curiosity. The kid looked like he was gonna break in half like a stick. She wanted to ask him so much, but seeing him get trampled on wasn't exactly a great conversation opener. Both blinked, like deer who suddenly got blindsided by flashing lights, really unsure of what to say.

An awkward silence filled the air for several minutes. Tsuna eventually ventured first, his words a bit hesitant.

"Um... hi," he meekly greeted, sounding kinda lame.

Tama raised an ironic eyebrow.

* * *

In the sactuary of his reception room, a lone Hibari Kyoya sat surrounded by a small mountain of paperwork. All were awaiting to be reviewed, signed off on, and organized, the fruits of the committee from the past month or so. However, surprisingly, it was the last thing on his mind at the moment. Instead, the prefect just flickered his eyes and frowned back to the matter at hand.

Subaru's file.

He couldn't stop thinking how easy it was to get, yet how useless it was at the same time. The information was just two, three at best, thin pages at most and didn't contain much but the bare minerals of his adversary. Grades... Medical... Everything but what he wanted. It seemed so inadequete, so belittled, of a girl who was able to pull a stunt of choking him with his own coat.

The memory of it made him narrow his eyes. _That bold herbviore, _Hibari couldn't help but smirk. He had underestimated her, no two ways about it, but she had done the same for him. A fatal mistake on her part. The satisfaction he got from putting her in her place felt so wonderful afterwards.

Yet, oddly enough, his victory wasn't the end of the annoyance (or was it interest?) that plagued him. There was something that still bothered him about her. He wondered what it was... that fighting style perhaps. Now that she showed her fangs, he noticed it was very unique, a mixed martial arts with a strong base in judo. Perfect for someone as physically weak as her. Of course, she was still far out of his league, but with a little work that girl could easily become very fierce.

The question was however: where did she learn that from?

Hibari snapped his eyes shut and growled. This was going to irritate him; he could feel it. Wondering why he even was investigating this in the first place, he made a low hissing sound. The last thing he should be concerned about was some pipsqueak freshman. Not with the recent disturbances about.

_Little punks, _he sneered. Over the past month, according to the graph Kuksabe presented, there had been an increase in fights concerning Janen Jr. High*, a bordering school next to Namimori. If they kept to their little territory, he wouldn't have minded them so much, but Namimori students somehow always got involved. That was unforgivable. Plus, he had a nagging feeling someone was making a power struggle behind the scenes.

And Hibari Kyoya didn't tolerate disorder. Not in HIS town.

Narrowing his eyes, the chairman calmed himself with images of bloody murder. Then, after refocusing his anger, he attended back to Subaru's file, analyzing its contents bit by bit.

Name: Tamaki Subaru. Grade level: freshman. Previous elementary school: Chikara* Academy. According to the transcripts, there wasn't much too remarkable about her. Grades were average. Physical examination also average. A few disciplinary reprimands here or there. As for family...

"Both parents: deceased," he read aloud, the diologue escaping into reality. "And current guardian... Yoshiba Hinata."

His fingers meticulously curled over the edge of the paper as he read further. There weren't any mentions further about Subaru after that. No phone number, address, or even hobbies were listed. The only thing left was about Yoshiba, who worked at Chikara as the principal. It wasn't too far away either, just a town away from Janen where coincidentally he was traveling to for an inspection.

_Well, now. Maybe I should pay a visit_, he mused. _And kill two birds with one stone._

Clutching the file in hand, Hibari gazed at the color photo. His teeth soon peeled back in a vampiric smirk at the thought of what was to come. Fine. This girl and those herbiviores wanted to play with him? By all means. It was the thrill of the hunt that made it all the more enjoyable. His nails circled the file, methodically and calculating.

"Tamaki Subaru, huh?" the prefect murmured in bloodlust. "Hn... Show me your secrets."

* * *

Tama-chan was a complete mystery to Tsuna.

He couldn't understand why; people usually were easy enough for him to read. At first, he thought that it was because she was merely in shock from the fight with Hibari. Reborn had urged him to show up and clarify things (the logic being that mafia bosses should take care of civilians); so he had come, hoping to smooth things over. Not to reveal TOO much of course. Exposing the truth about his "family" would only make her think he was nuts, after after all.

However, as he tried to give some decent explanation (desperately scooting around the word MAFIA) for what she had witnessed, all he could see on her face was a blank, unreadable expression. Which worried him a little.

_It could be worse,_ he tried reassuring himself. _At least she's not angry._ As unlikely as it was, he hoped she bought the story. To be blunt, the fictional creation was almost as hard to believe as the truth itself though.

For example...

"So, let me get this straight," Tama-chan started, her eyebrows beginning to scrunch again. "You're in a GANG?"

Tsuna visibly cringed. "Um... sort of," laughed the boy nervously. He didn't really like labeling his friends as a bunch of rowdy yankis,* but at any rate, it was easier than saying they were in the Italian mob. Plus, he had a feeling she could relate better to that word anyway.

"And you all got enlisted for some crazy training by your uncle, who's a professional wrestler? Which led to a street fight with the yakuza after you guys accidently trashed their place?" she continued incredulously.

_This is getting more and more ridiculous_, he thought sheepishly. _And the Ring Battles were hardly a "street fight." _

Somehow, after asking where they got their fighting skills from, she got the idea that they were involved in Japan's underground. It sounded pretty bad, but still not as bad as explaining that 'No, it was actually Reborn, that baby you saw at our house, who trained us' and that 'No, the Varia are actually a badass hitman squad, we didn't actually trash their place, and we're lucky to have the skin on our backs right now.'

He just went with it as best he could. "Kinda."

"And those gloves of yours? The flame? Gokudera's dynamite?" she challenged further.

Quickly, he thought of something on the spot. "Well, that's just Gokudera-kun's hobby. As for the gloves... they're guantlets that my 'uncle' put halographic effects on; the flames are just for show. He likes tinkering with stuff." _Like guns and people's lives, _he mentally added with a grimance. Gokudera's pyromaniac tendencies probably were believeable, but the gauntlets were tricky.

He tried to look convincing.

"..."

However, that blank look just stayed there, like a plaster mask. "And what makes you think I'd believe a crazy story like that?" she finished.

Silence.

_Crap._ She got him there. Tsuna became tongue-tied, making a strangling sound in the back of his throat. "Um... Why?" He bit his tongue. "...Uh... 'Cause-"

"If a weakling like No Good Tsuna can beat up Hibari with oven mittens and a flame burning on his head, then anything is possible?" offered a chilidish voice.

Tsuna nearly had a heart attack. The teen jumped as his tutor materialized out of no where, perched on the bed sipping a cup of espresso. He wondered how long the hitman had been there for.

From the yelp Tama-chan gave, apparently she didn't notice him either. "Holy cow! Where'd he come from?"

Tsuna really wished he knew the answer to THAT one. Maybe hell. With a glare, he rebuked the toddler before him and sat normally again. "Reborn!" he frowned. "Don't scare us like that! And what's with that logic anyways?"

The baby simply grinned, unconcerned at all as usual before gazing back to Tama-chan. "Well, what do you think? Do you think it makes sense?" he asked, looking for her opinion.

The girl tilted her head as though thinking intently. The idea seemed to appeal to her, Tsuna noted with surprise. The realization was reflected in her eyes, clear as a shiny glass ball under a light. "Ah... you're right," she nodded surely. "Kinda does."

_What the hell._ He didn't know whether to feel insulted or relieved. At a loss for words, Tsuna just sulked and threw a nasty look at Reborn. Stupid baby, always making him look so uncool.

"Don't give me that look. You should be grateful that I salvaged your botched acting," his tutor smirked in a low whisper. He raised his espresso, as if in congratulations. "Although, you know she'll find out eventually anyway, right?"

Tsuna pursed his lips tightly, muttering a sullen "I know" under his breath. He wasn't looking forward to it either. Something told him she was gonna raise hell about it. _At least toning down the story helped,_ thought the boy wistfully. _I hope..._

Venturing a peek, he tilted his head to watch Tama-chan. To his relief, she seemed pretty satisfied with the answers. The girl was leaning back comfortably into the bed, not a single conflict showing on her face, and that blank mask turned to one of contented thoughtfullness_. __Thank God, _he silently prayed.

"By the way," she mentioned casually. "I got one more question. Can your uncle teach me how to fight?"

The serenity got shot to hell instantly. Tsuna nearly choked, thrown off guard completely by the question. For a minute, the boy was hoping that he had heard incorrectly, but unfortunately, from the intense stare she was giving, that didn't seem to be the case. Reborn noticeably looked more interested, and a faint grin stretched across his face.

_Oh no. No no no no..._ the boy cringed. He opened his mouth to protest, but at excatly that moment, his tutor cut him off with "We'd be happy to!"

Tama-chan's lit up like it was Christmas, a stark contrast to the pale white Tsuna's had turned. With urgency, he whipped his head and, in a low whisper, hissed "What are you doing?"

Reborn simply shrugged, but a scheming gleam had appeared in his eyes. It never meant anything good either, promising something evil or sadistic to come in the future. "It's not a bad thing for someone to owe you," he softly smirked. "Maybe we can even recruit her."

"But Tama-chan's not even IN the mafia. Don't drag her down into this crazy world of yours!"

"That's what you think, Stupid Tsuna," he answered cryptically. "But apparently, I haven't taught you enough to notice it yet."

"Notice what?" the boy demanded in frenzied frustration. All he saw was a big complicated mess that was bound to get really bad really quick. Reborn needed to learn how to keep his ideas to himself! "Please, for once, can't you just-"

"Holy shitaki mushrooms!"

Their heated whispering suddenly dropped as the wierd exclamation echoed from the bed. Reminded of his visit, Tsuna quickly glanced up, only to see that Tama-chan was holding her head with her left hand. The other one gripped a purple envelope, whose letter he assumed was the one balanced on her lap. Her face was wide with a stunned expression, a mirrored one of probably his own only two seconds ago.

"What's wrong?" Tsuna asked curiously. "Is everything ok?"

For a moment, his friend simply stayed silent. Stunned, she let the letter slip out of her hands and onto the sheets. Tsuna could faintly make out the words _cousin... how are you?... motorcycle... visit... _from the parchment. Finally, the girl opened her lips, eyes still as wide as flying saucers but practically bursting with a cheerful light.

"Hahaha! That crazy idiot! I don't believe this!" she laughed loudly, a grin appearing instantly.

Fondly, Tama-chan folded the letter and hugged it close to her chest. Then, the girl turned and flashed a wild, crazily happy look he had never seen before on her face. It was like a beaming sun, so fierce yet so excited at the same time.

"Yo, Tsuna!" grinned the orange-haired girl. "You wanna meet my best friend?"

* * *

Chapter 5 End!

yanki= Juvenile delinquent

Janen= Vicious

Chikara= Strong

Welcome back all! Let me just start by saying THANK YOU to all of you who have kept supporting this while I was away. While I was slaving away with college application stuff, I noticed lots of people kept favoriting or alerting this story. It's made me imensely happy. ^^

Oh, and happy thank you's to the reviwers too:

_BlackMoonWhiteSky_

_PancakeRave_

_Little Bookwyrm_

_Lunatic Sheep _[Oh, and don't worry, your English is fine :)]

_Genuinely-Unique_

_MikaUchiha666 _

Finally, a dear BIG thank you to my beta-reader _kimkakashi_ and my friends B and Will. Without them, my inspiration would still be dry. ^^'

I hope to have another chapter up soon, but no promises! Until then, let me know what you guys think. I kinda rushed this, cause I have a feeling school's gonna rain hell on me soon. Criticisms welcome; flames not so much.

Until next time!


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